The government had stopped production of all kind of drugs by 20 pharmaceutical companies and revoked licenses of 14 drug manufacturing companies for producing substandard medicines, health minister Mohammad Nasim told parliament on Wednesday.
The government also stopped 14 companies from manufacturing all kinds of antibiotics, 12 companies from producing penicillin and cephalosporin groups, Nasim said while replaying to a starred question of ruling lawmaker Ishrafil Alam.
In absence of Ishrafil, another ruling party lawmaker Shamim Osman tabled the question.
Nasim, however, did not name the pharmaceutical companies.
There are 853 drug manufacturing companies in the country­—268 allopathic, 267 unani, 79 homeopathy, 32 harbal. Nineteen Bangladeshi nationals are among those infected with the Zika virus in Singapore, Nasim told the House, adding that Bangladesh had heightened surveillance at sea, air and land ports so that no people infected with Zika virus can enter the country.
The health minister disclosed the information in reply to a starred question from ruling party lawmaker Mohammad Mizanur Rahman of Khulna 2 constituency.
These patients have recovered from the infection and were working at their respected work place, the minister said.
Zika is an emerging mosquito-borne virus that was first identified in Uganda in 1947 in rhesus monkeys, and later it spread to others parts of the globe.
Zika virus infected people were found in 88 countries and almost all Asian countries are on the risk of outbreak of the virus, the health minister said.
Nasim, while ansering another starred question from ruling party lawmaker of Bogra 5 constituency Habibar Rahman, said that current population growth rate in the country was 1.37 per cent and estimated population of the country would stand 17.16 crore in 2021.
The minister cited Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics information.
Fourth day of the 12th session of 10th parliament, presided over by the speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, started at 5pm on the day.